The big news of last weekend was Matthew Stafford's return to Detroit to face the franchise that took him No. 1 overall way back in the 2009 NFL Draft.
Stafford was a Detroit mainstay for 12 seasons before the Lions traded him to the Los Angeles Rams, with whom he promptly won a Super Bowl.
Now it's the Lions on the hunt for the Super Bowl after beating Stafford's Rams in the wild-card round, but much of the news coming out of that game wasn't the story of Detroit besting its old hero, but rather his thoughts on a rather vicious hit one of his teammates took near the end of the contest.
#Rams QB Matthew Stafford to #Lions S Kerby Joseph after his hit on Tyler Higbee: "Hey!! That's a good hit, but you're dirty as f*** and you know it. It's been on tape. I seen it."
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) January 18, 2024
Higbee tore his ACL and MCL on the play.pic.twitter.com/jB3lAX48XR
That clip made the rounds after the game and it became such a big story that even Lions head coach Dan Campbell addressed it.
The Lions are now moving on to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the divisional round while Stafford heads into another offseason. Unfortunately, this drama has threatened to be "the moment" in the storyline between the Lions and Stafford, but it was far from the only interaction the borderline Hall of Fame quarterback had with his first team.
In fact, many of the interactions were good.
Here's Stafford and former teammate Frank Ragnow:
Former @Lions teammates Matthew Stafford and Frank Ragnow shared an awesome moment after last night's game. ❤️@NFLFilms | @insidetheNFL pic.twitter.com/8juGvnThOF
— NFL (@NFL) January 15, 2024
There's also this:
Matthew Stafford congratulating Lions' staff for their first playoff win in 32 years pic.twitter.com/UFlecunNiQ
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) January 15, 2024
And this:
Goff and Stafford postgame. pic.twitter.com/kX7YGyYmz1
— NFL (@NFL) January 15, 2024
It's funny how one narrative can take over what was otherwise a tremendous return for Stafford to the place he once called home.
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